Shoal Bay Campground

We arrived mid afternoon, neighboring camper immediately came over to ask if we needed any assistance backing in our 22” trailer. Campsite E04. Some of the sites have a few steps to where picnic table is - not recommended for those having trouble with small steps. Peaceful. We were able to watch cranes, hawks swoop close by through the trees. Fish were flipping in the lake all day. Breeze coming off the lake kept us comfortable on hot days. We loved camping here.

The campground has plenty of old trees with lots of shade and views of the beautiful Dardanelle Lake. A massive heat wave hit the country the week we were camping here and temperatures exceeded one hundred degrees. The swimming area was heavily used and we were glad the kids had a place to cool down. Our site E7 was perfect except for the electric that kept us tripping a breaker with our A/C, refrigerator, and coffee pot in use at the same time. The 3-way Dometic refrigerator was switched over to gas and we survived the poor connection. It is possible the other sites do not have this problem but for some reason E7 had a magic marker written note that said it was only 115 volts even though it had a 30 amp plug (not an electrician so do not know what any of that means). Regardless, our site was clean and private and very close to the clean showers up on the hill behind us. There were two nice wooded trails to hike if the weather was not so hot. And plenty of camp roads to ride our bicycles around. There is a very nice wooded and secluded camping area up the hill in section H that has electricity only, but water spigots are on the road here and there. Check-in was friendly and accommodating as we showed up two hours early. We stopped here to rest for two days and prepare for our next stop in Tulsa, Oklahoma and all things pertaining to Bob Dylan. He claims to feel a good vibe there where his museum and archives are located next to the Woody Guthrie Museum and other concert halls, bars, and coffee shops. Excited about this next phase of our summer trip.

As others have said, this is a beautiful, quiet, small campground on a pretty body of water with large sites in a wooded area. Beautiful views out every window. Try to get a site with a water view. This one does not have it from the camper, but offers same from the site. With the Senior Pass the rate dropped from $18/night to $9/night. Clean enough bathrooms. I love Corps of Engineers campgrounds, and this is just lovely. It's convenient to a trip through northern Arkansas. There is kayak rental. Two bars of ATT 5G service completes the package.

Nice and quiet. Bathrooms not super clean but functional. We had water and 50 amp. Both worked fine. Per the campground host you can dump gray water at your site. They encourage you to dump near a tree during the dry season. Beware of the beach. My grandson found a fishing lure. Wear water shoes. Host Gary was very nice and helpful. We have a 38 foot trailer and had no problem at our site. We will be back.